Free Heart of the Incubus by Rosalie Lario Page A

nasally voice with a slight lisp most definitely did not belong to Cresso. Her heart banged against her rib cage. Genevieve shot up and pedaled backward. “Dr. Benedict!”
    He gave her a predatory smile and smoothed back his thinning gray hair. “Didn’t mean to startle you, my dear. Just dropping by with that research I wanted you to see.”
    When he set his clipboard on the counter, Genevieve took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. She couldn’t lose her cool every time she had to deal with someone, even if she did fear he might be her stalker. “Th-thank you. Maybe I can take a look later?”
    “Of course.” Dr. Benedict made a show of examining her face. “Are you sure you’re okay, dear? Your skin still looks rather flushed.”
    His words made her flesh prickle with foreboding. “My…skin?”
    “Yes. I do hope you’re not coming down with something.”
    He moved a few inches closer, and his tongue flicked against his lips. The overhead lighting caught his eyes, causing his pupils to dilate into little slits. At that moment, he very much resembled the snake he could shift into.
    And snakes shed their skin.
    Maybe her stalker showered her with skinned animals because he was accustomed to molting his own.
    Her heart pumped with painful intensity as she shrank farther away. Where the hell was Cresso? Somehow she’d expected him to be hanging out by her door, ready to rush to her rescue.
    If only she had a scalpel or syringe somewhere within reach, but there was nothing. Of course, if she could get to the microscope, she could always use it to bash him over the head.
    “Perhaps it’s a winter chill.” He shook his head with a grin. “That would be a shame.”
    “I…I’m sure I’m fine.”
    “No, that wouldn’t do,” he continued on as if he hadn’t heard her. “Could cause you to miss out on work. Here. I have something for you.”
    When he reached into the pocket of his long lab coat, Genevieve’s breath came out in harsh gasps. Hell, she was dangerously close to hyperventilating. Maybe it was a knife, or something even worse.
    He removed the object just as the door swung open. Cresso flew in with a hoarse yell that made both Dr. Benedict and her jump. The thing in Dr. Benedict’s hand fell to the ground.
    “Get the hell away from her!” Cresso rushed at Dr. Benedict and grabbed him by the lapels of his lab coat.
    Dr. Benedict gave a surprised hiss. “What is going on here?”
    Cresso swung Dr. Benedict around and shoved him up against the wall. It was then that Genevieve got a good look at what he’d been about to hand her.
    “I’ll tell you what’s going on,” Cresso muttered in a deep voice that sent shivers up her spine. “What did you think you were going to do, huh? Did you—”
    “Wait!”
    Cresso frowned and took his eyes off the terrified-looking Dr. Benedict long enough to bark, “What?”
    She bit the inside of her cheek to hold back the laugh that threatened to bubble out. Bending down, she picked up the packet and held it up so Cresso could see. “Dr. Benedict thought I might be getting sick. He was about to offer me a packet of herbal tea.”
    Cresso didn’t move for a long moment. Then the look of rage on his face receded and was replaced with obvious embarrassment. He let go of Dr. Benedict. “Oh. Sorry about that.”
    “Yes, well…” Dr. Benedict stepped back toward the door on shaky legs. “You keep that, dear.” He turned and fled, muttering something about crazy kids.
    Once he’d gone, Genevieve covered her mouth with her hand and let the laughter loose. “Poor Dr. Benedict. Almost killed for offering me tea.”
    His mouth tight, Cresso glanced toward the door. “Don’t be so quick to dismiss him. Just because he didn’t intend to cause you harm at this very moment doesn’t mean that he’s harmless. Don’t forget—he’s a shifter. He could crush you with a single blow.”
    Cresso was right. Not only that, but Dr. Benedict had mentioned her